Center for Enhanced Performance
During the week of 4-11 May, 169 Cadet volunteers from the Cadet Tutor program provided TEE prep sessions to almost 350 cadets the week before Term End Exams. The weeks preceding TEEs, cadets are guided by Tutor Director, Mendy Phillips, in how best to provide a comprehensive and informative sessions to support cadets in their preparation for the upcoming TEE exams. A select few CRLA certified tutors act as the CIC for the event and work with many of the Course Directors for the respective Plebe and Yearling classes. Course Directors provide advice, TEE tips and guidance, and a general concept as to what can be expected of cadets for the TEE exams. Cadets then develop course specific study materials and help to train over 200 tutors on how to run these sessions.
The National Honor Society Of Phi Kappa Phi Induction And Recognition Ceremony. On April 28, 2015, the national honor society of phi kappa phi held its annual induction and recognition ceremony. Guest speaker, col tom cook, provided insight into his interpretation of phi kappa phi’s motto, “let the love of learning rule humanity.”
Dr. Jean Blair (vice dean) recognized fifteen new members from the class of 2015 and forty-two new members from the class of 2016 along with new faculty members LTC Richard Comitz (C&Ls) and Mr. Robert Mcloughlin (Eng.&Phil.). Twenty-two outstanding yearlings and twelve outstanding plebes were given certificates of achievement. Four scholastic achievement awards were presented to cadet Hope Landsem, Dr. Luke Gerdes (BS&L), CPT(p) Nathan Jennings (Hist), and dr. Kenny McDonald (se).
Department of Behavioral Sciences and Leadership
BS&L’s Elevation initiative travels to meet GEN(R) David Pertraueus in NYC. "MAJ Chevy Cook and a few cadets from BS&L's Elevation Initiative (Raoul Valencia '16, Natalia Drew '15, Othie Freeny '16, Mark McGinnis '17 and Kyle Wolffe '17) went down to NYC to have dinner with world renown retired General David Petraeus at the New York Athletic Club (NYAC). We all received a guided tour of the NYAC and sat down for a meal full of lessons learned and insights from the General, interspersed with details from his service at the platoon level to command of our forces in Iraq, Afghanistan and CENTCOM. His words helped us define reality in our global environment, from an emergent China to an ominous ISIS to a resurgent American economy. He even found time to talk about balance as we all aspire to work hard and do our best, optimizing our teams through diversity, and a story or two about his own yellow '73 Corvette as a young LT."
Cadets Negotiate in Final Simulation TEE at Constitution Island. On 21 and 28 April 2015, cadets enrolled in MG 390 (Negotiation for Leaders) conducted their final simulation exercise (FSE) at Constitution Island. The FSE served as the cadet’s Term End Exam (TEE) to evaluate skills learned throughout the course. Cadets are ‘deployed’ to Constitution Island via boat, engaged in Negotiation STX lanes, and conducted negotiations with role players serving as German NATO Officers, Afghan Police Chiefs, and Aggrieved Mothers. On 21 April, the cadets completed in bilateral negotiations and on 28 April, multi-party negotiations. Delroy Patrick (BTD), and Ms. Julia Spain (BSL), offered an interactive experience for the cadets. This TEE created the opportunity for training and academics to intersect in a tactical environment. Cadets expanded learning on the returning boat ride where leaders facilitated after-action reviews for immediate learning and feedback.
Tuck School of Business at Dartmouth Leadership Exchange. On Friday, 24 April 2015, BS&L's Leadership and Management Studies (LMS) hosted 20 Tuck School of Business MBA graduate students for the first portion of the Tuck-USMA leadership exchange. Participating USMA leaders included COL Spain (BSL), LTC Oxendine (GeNE), MAJ Fanitzi (BSL), MAJ Rybacki (BSL), and MAJ Silk (BSL). During the exchange, participants learned the importance of principled negotiation through an introduction and practice session on the seven-elements of negotiation, conducted a case study on transformational leadership theory, participated in a walking tour of West Point (facilitated by CDTs AJ McGovern (A1, ’15); Chris Senese (H4, ’16); and Callie West (B4, ‘16), ate lunch in the cadet mess, interacted with Cadet Panelists (CDT First Captain Austin Welch, ’16; Joe Ladd (D4, ’16); and Meg Goode (A1, ’17)) who shared their West Point, and participated in a Team RWB Leadership Team Building, newly developed by Team RWB leaders LTC Oxendine, MAJ Fanitzi, and MAJ Silk (facilitated with CDTs Meg Goode, Joe Ladd, and Rima Gasparini (G1, ’17). This was a team building event through reflection and physically challenge.
Department of Civil and Mechanical Engineering
3D Printing of Cadet Chapel Key. The Cadet Chapel of the United States Military Academy has several well-built, medieval style doors that are secured with antique door locks. These locks are opened with large, vintage skeleton keys that are approximately the size of an adjustable wrench. The keys have long since been commercially unavailable. In order to provide the Cadet Chapel with much needed replacement keys, a Firstie Mechanical Engineering Capstone Group performed a service project to develop a means to reverse engineer and subsequently 3D print historic replica keys. On 18 May 2015, CDT Mark Hesford (ME, ’15) delivered the first metal, 3D printed key to CH (COL) Barbara Sherer. The key was designed, fabricated, and tested using equipment within the Department of Civil and Mechanical Engineering (CME). To make the part, the Cadets used a 3D printing process based on Selective Laser Sintering (SLS) technology that resulted in a bronze piece. Mr. Rod Wilson, (CME Lab Technician) assisted CDTs Chrissy Cox, Andrew Glover, Mark Hesford, and Mike Deschene with the 3D printing process. The Cadet Chapel key presented to CH Sherer was both precisely functional and ascetically pleasing.
CDT Means Wins 2nd Place Mead Ethics Essay Prize. Cadet Matthew Means, a Civil Engineer in the Class of 2015, was notified that his essay took second place in the American Society of Civil Engineers (ASCE) Daniel W. Mead Ethics Essay Prize. The prize was established in 1939 in honor of Daniel Mead, past president of ASCE. ASCE Student Chapters are allowed to nominate one essay, with ASCE typically receiving over 200 entries from nearly 300 student chapters. This year’s essay topic was “Should the Engineer of Record (who has sealed a set of plans) be held responsible, to any degree, for injury or death to builders or bystanders that occurs during the construction of his/her design?” Cadet Mean’s prize includes an $800 award.
Pursuit of Patent for the Excalibur HILT. Excalibur is a 155 mm GPS guided artillery projectile that can strike within 10 feet of a target at a range of nearly 25 miles. To improve the transportability of the 100+ lb Excalibur projectile, a Firstie Mechanical Engineering Capstone Group created an award winning design known as the Excalibur Handle for Improved Lift and Transport (HILT). Well-tested and elegantly simple, the Armament Research and Development Center (ARDEC) and the Excalibur Program Office are supporting the pursuit of a patent for the HILT design. CDTs Andrew Barthel, Craig ‘Taylor’ Ferguson, Austin Hunt, and Albert Sheppard, as well as Mr. Rich Ellingsen (CME Lab Technician) will be listed on the application for patent.
Department of History
The Department of History is very proud to share the news that The West Point History of the Civil War, edited by Colonel Ty Seidule and Professors Sam Watson and Cliff Rogers, has received the Army Historical Foundation’s 2014 Distinguished Writing Award.
On 18 February the USMA Civil Rights Staff Ride class was honored to host Mr. Gilbert King, Pulitzer Prize winning author of Devil in the Grove. Mr. King was gracious enough to speak with cadets participating in the Civil Rights Staff Ride—run jointly through the Department of Law and the Department of History—and then field an array of interesting questions before joining staff ride participants for lunch at the West Point Club. His words were truly stimulating and set a great foundation for the rest of the week's classes. The Civil Rights Staff Ride team will stay in touch with Mr. King when it traverses Lake County, Florida and continues to explore this county's vast, if often overlooked, Civil Rights legacy.